You Can't Win Them All... 3 Techniques to Handle Cold Calling Objections

Cold calling remains one of the most popular techniques for salespeople to generate new business leads and achieve conversions, yet that certainly doesn't make it easy to master.

Indeed, in B2B marketing, professionals are likely to face a raft of sales objections offered up as reasons not to buy their products on a daily basis.

However, it's no good crossing your fingers and hoping prospects won't have objections, or giving up at the first 'I'm not interested'.

After all, according to a study of five million cold calls by Chorus, it takes 106 dials of the phone just to convert a single meeting, so you need to be persistent.

Instead of feeling despondent, what's needed is plenty of practice and some well-honed techniques known to get prospects on your side. Here are three of the best.

1. Ask great questions

Asking questions of your call recipient will help to build rapport, and the first you should pose is 'is now a good time?'. Research by Gong found the best day for calling prospects is Wednesday, while Ring DNA discovered the ideal time for cold calls is 09:00 AM (although you should make it late morning for leads you've already warmed up).

However, it's always worth checking, because this politeness could make the potential customer feel less defensive and more open to hearing what you have to say.

Other good open-ended questions that can lead to better dialogue once you've got them curious include:

• What issues have you come up against with your current supplier?
• What goals do you have for the coming year?
• How do you handle [insert industry issue here] at your company?

2. Listen very carefully

Once you've asked your questions, it's vital to listen to what your prospect is saying as opposed to jumping in with a spiel that could make them feel pressurized.

Don't be afraid to pause and consider your response here, as a quick 'I'm just thinking how we could help you out' can work wonders in humanizing you and ensuring your prospect knows you're taking them seriously.

If you pay attention properly, you may uncover something you can use to your advantage underneath any initial reluctance to engage. For example, if you've just heard them say they're busy, don't assume that's a no and they don't want to speak to you - view it as an invitation to reschedule a call for when they have more time.

If they've told you they're with a competitor, it doesn't mean they won't switch (52% of customers in any industry are open to it at any one time, according to Rain research). This could be your chance to showcase what you have to offer in terms of competition.

Failing to listen may mean you don't hear opportunities as they arise, which could cost you your call.

3. Follow up using what you've learned

Once you know what really lies behind a customer's objections, you can craft your response accordingly. Don't be afraid to ask if you've covered their original pain point, as it can positively influence their likelihood of accepting a follow-up call or appointment if they say yes.

Useful phrases at this point in the conversation include:

• I think you'll get value out of [insert product or solution here] because...
• Our current client [insert name] had the same issue, but they found...
• If we follow this up, I think we can easily address...

Case studies in particular are definitely worth weaving in because they add significant validation to your pitch and subconsciously affect your prospect's view of you for the better.

Again, being prepared is crucial here; a 'cheat sheet' can ensure you cover all the main points and don't make mistakes with regard to facts and figures, particularly if you're using other clients as examples.

Practice makes perfect

These techniques should become easier to apply the more you practice using them and they can offer useful solutions to common sales objections, which are often simply a knee-jerk response to being surprised out of the blue.

Indeed, sales veterans will testify that it's surprising how a cold call that initially sounds gloomy can turn on a dime once you get the person on the other end talking.

Although no sometimes really does mean no and even the best tricks won't work every time, they might mean the difference between a dead end and a prospect - and even the occasional conversion into a sale.